The management of Makerere University has restructured 20 undergraduate programmes. This was approved by the University Council aiming at reducing 82 courses to 62 starting with the next intake of August 2021.
According to Dr Vincent Ssembatya, the Director of Quality Assurance at Makerere University, the aim was to enhance quality at the university and promote research at all levels. That it is also intended at increasing the percentage of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) students from 35% to at least 40% of the total enrolment.
“We are going to be research-led and focus more on graduate training. Our curriculum is going to face more in the direction of science and technology to the level of about 40%. The country will not thrive without these disciplines. For every 10, 000 students admitted at the university each year, 4,000 will be graduate students,’’ Dr Ssembatya explained.
The restructured programmes include;
- Development Studies which has been changed into a unit in other courses. Continuing students will do it as an optional subject.
- Community Psychology as well as Industrial and Organizational Psychology have been merged into one programme.
- Dr Ssembatya said that the seven agricultural science programmes will be merged into four. These include Bachelor of Science in Agriculture, Bachelor of Science in Agricultural Land Use and Management, Bachelor of Agribusiness Management, Bachelor of Agricultural and Rural Innovation.
- Other agricultural programmes proposed for merger are Bachelor of Science in Horticulture, Bachelor of Science in Human Nutrition and Bachelor of Science in Food Science and Technology.
- Under engineering, the university has proposed to merge Bachelor of Science in Telecommunication Engineering, Computer Engineering and Biomedical Engineering. All these will be revert to Electrical Engineering.
He further explained that the graduate training will also support research because the person coming to do research at master’s level will be required to have a strong basis at the undergraduate level.
On how the restructuring of programmes affects Makerere University staff, Dr. Ssembatya said permanent staff at the university would not be affected much because initially, they had been teaching two different programmes and the course units cut across the programmes being merged.
